Cali Bee Music artist: Brad Wilson - Brad "Guitar" Wilson - New Release Review

 I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, Brad "Guitar" Wilson, by Brad Wilson and it's a solid blues rocker. Opening with The Ballad of John Lee, Brad Wilson on guitar and vocal sets a terrific "John Lee Hooker" like boogie backed by Brian Beal on bass and Adam Gust on drums. With the addition of harmonica, this is a smoking opener. Cesta Ayers' track, Someday After Awhile gives Wilson the opportunity to shine on vocal and his guitar playing shows great feel. Backed by Beal, Peter Wolf on drums and Frankie Vriens, this track really simmers. Otis Rush's I Can't Quit You Baby retains much of Rush's original arrangement and at over 8 minutes gives Wilson a chance to really shine on guitar. His phrasing is strong and his vibrato tight and stinging. Backed by Oscar Huguet on bass and Adam Gust on drums, this is a strong addition to the set. Wrapping the release is blues rocker, Drivin', with a contemporary radio feel. A solid melody, Jack Van Aert on bass, Willem Van Kempen on drums, Peter Wolf on drums, Frankie Vriens on keys and Daniel Guitarra on guitars makes for a solid closer. 

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Cali Bee Music artist: Brad Wilson - Power Blues Guitar Live - New Release Review

I just received the newest release, Power Blues Guitar Live, from Brad Wilson and it's captures him at his best. Opening with Muddy Waters' Got My Mojo Working, Wilson springs to life with a high energy cover of this classic track with a more modern, blues rock take. Aggressive guitar riffs and backing by Oscar Huguet on bass and Thaxter Drums gives this track an almost Cream like feel. Super opener. On Freddie King's I'm Tore Down, Wilson keeps the energy high and Kirk Nelson adds a nice slice of keyboard. Giving the track legitimate swing on a Pat Travers like guitar attack, this track moves. Willie Dixon/Otis Rush track, I Can't Quit You Baby, develops a really nice blues groove with warm jazz chords under the melody. One of the nicest tracks on the release, Wilson stretches it out for 8+ minutes. Driving jazz track, All Kinds Of A Fool, is up next and Wilson's vocals and Nelson's key lines give it nice burn. Kofi Baker (Ginger Baker's son) winds it up and Wilson's guitar lines are clean and deliberate. Albert King's Born Under A Bad Sign gets a funky rework and it's got Wilson's fingerprint on it. It still sounds like King's track but it is all Wilson styling. His guitar breaks are hot and gripping. Robert Johnson's Sweet Home Chicago is a driving shuffle with modified Elmore James riffs and plenty of spunk. Very nice! Slide On Over has a contemporary blues rock sound with Robin Trower like riffs. Willie Dixon's, I Just Want To Make Love To You, has a heavy, lumbering, blues rock sound with solid bass thump. Pulling out a bit of pyrotechnics on this one, Wilson blends contemporary riffs from a broad background and fuses them into a solid blues boogie. She Moves Me is up next keeping a low key on the track but with explosive blues rock riffs taking up a good part of the nearly 6 minute track. Another Muddy Waters track, Standin' Around Cryin', opens with a real nice blues guitar intro over a solid bass line. Wilson really has the guitar opened up on this 8 plus minute track, one of my favorite tracks on the release. Country swing flavored rocker, Black Coffee At Sunrise, has a great bass line and Wilson sets up some of the coolest vocals on the release. His snappy guitar riffs bounce nicely on the knee of this peppy track. T Bone Walker's Stormy Monday sets Wilson up for a real screamer with Nelson keeping the basic melody on keys. Nellson takes a real nice organ solo on this one balancing out what is really a guitar heavy release. Very cool. Wrapping the release is I'm Still Breathing, a more contemporary blues based ballad with nice keyboard work and some sweet sax work by Joe Robb. A cool closer to a cool live release.



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Cali Bee Music Inc. artist: Brad Wilson - Blues Thunder - New Release Review

I just received the newest release, Blues Thunder, from Brad Wilson and it's a mix of pop and guitar stylist. Opening with Is It Any Wonder, Wilson, who takes lead vocal and guitar, sings smoothly in quiet pop form but with tasty guitar riffs throughout. Backed by Brian Beal on bass, Amrik Sandhu on drums and Kirk Nelson on keys, this is a perfect radio track. Up tempo, Change It Up has an almost Latin rhythm and Wilson's riff, although not really Spanish in origin, have a kind of Santana feel. Moody blues ballad, Blue Shadow, features Wilson on vocal with really clean piano work by Nelson. This is a pretty classic 50's style jazz track executed in cool form. Taking a page from Robben Ford's book, Wilson rips some pretty nice riffs in contrast to this otherwise subdued track. Very nice! Blues rocker, Step By Step has a nice rhythm to it and Tumbleweed Mooney adds some real nice harp work as well. Title track Blues Thunder is a definite fist pumper throw back to arena rock. Wilson steps out of the box on this one throwing out every riff a good shredder holds. Let's Go Barefootin' It in sharp contrast has a Bo Diddley rhythm and is almost devoid of guitar. Mooney helps to emphasize the already prominent rhythm on harp. My Faith Has Been Broken has a classic rock styling with dominant vocals and a solid melody. Cool Runnin' has an understated feel and a straightforward melody. This track could easily get cross radio play with is easy rhythm and nice melody. Home has a rambling rhythm with rolling tom tom and acoustic guitar. With an almost Bruce Springsteen feel, this track has a nice feel. Rocker, Black Coffee At Sunrise, gets the band hopping with a jump kind of feel. Possibly my favorite track on the release, Wilson spits out some nice fluid hot riffs. Sugar Sweet is a cool jazzy track with an easy rhythm. A real likable track it shows the strongest construction on the release with a tapestry of instruments tightly woven together and a hot guitar solo to boot. Wrapping the release is another straight up rocker, Never Again, with a concrete bottom and solid vocals. Wilson lets out the dog on his fretboard showing that he's not just another guitar player for a nice conclusion to an evenly paced release.

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Blues Boulevard Records artist: Brad Wilson - Hands On The Wheel - New Release Review

I just received the newest release (October 8, 2013), Hands On The Wheel, from Brad Wilson. Ready for some hard driving blues rock...well, here it is! Wilson opens his newest release with Hands On The Wheel, a serious rocker. Rocket, another rocker with over driven rock riffs featuring Brian James on bass, and JJ Garcia on drums. Nobody But You opens with an Elmore James slide riff but rolls into a boogies track with twists and turns. All Kinds Of A Fool shows Wilson has his hands firmly on the throttle pushing the guitar into high for high power riffs and then down to 1st for vocals. The Road Back To You, another blues infused rocker, shows a more controlled pace but with hot riffs pushing the dynamics. Cruisin' The Coast has tandem slide guitar parts sounding a bit reminiscent of riffs but Les Dudek. It is a lighter jazzy track but with a melodic instrumental sound. The Ballad Of John Lee is a straight up boogie with traces in Texas. This is a pretty solid guitar ripper and one that should attract most blues rock fans a la La Grainge. Blues Magic is a light Latin jazz style track with an almost Santana sound. Nice guitar work peppers the track and the melody is quite nice. Last Call is a blues ballad with a strong melody. Sounding a lot like Gregg Allman, Wilson does some of his best vocals and Francesca Capasso add really nice backing vocals. Slide On Over is a blues rocker more reminiscent of SRV or Chris Duarte. Possibly one of my favorite tracks on the release, Wilson lays down some really hot riffs on this track. Hot Stuff is a rock track with a taste of Steeley Dan and that pop/jazz rock styling. I'm Still Breathing is another blues ballad, this on really reminding me of one of my favorite Greg Allman tracks, Queen of Hearts. Not at all a copy of having just traces, a really well composed melody and solid vocals. My One Desire, a soul style track is another of my choices on the release. Simple understated guitar riffs blend nicely into the arrangement making for a well balanced song. Wrapping the release is Roll With Me, an easy going rocker. Is a simple rock track that could easily find airplay with smooth vocals and well stated guitar work.

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Cali Bee Music artist: Brad Wilson - Blues Magic - New Release Review

I just received the new recording, Blues Magic, by Brad Wilson. Wilson has assembled 11 original tracks with strong airplay appeal. Blues Magic is a smooth rocker with light latin Rhythms not unlike contemporary Santana. Raining In My Heart has a R&B feel along the lines of Boz Scaggs. Roll With Me continues with Wilson's own flavor in this case maybe sounding a little like Steve Miller. Hot Stuff has a slick blues rock sound and cool guitar riffs are scattered throughout. My One Desire is a soul style blues track featuring solid vocals from Wilson and of course featuring strong guitar work. Cryin' Lonely Teardrops has a R&B feel and On A Summer Day continues a smooth rock feel. Nobody But You starts with a classic Elmore James riff and keeps the drive going for a cool blues rocker. Wilson brings the tempo down for I'm Still Breathin', a bluesy ballad. The Road Back To You is a straight up rocker which could easily see strong airplay. Wintergreen, a quiet ballad, finishes the set. Overall a solid musical set which could appeal to the general population.
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